All-Optical Spatial Light Modulator

ABSTRACT

A spatial light modulator (SLM) comprised of a 2D array of optically-controlled semiconductor nanocavities can have a fast modulation rate, small pixel pitch, low pixel tuning energy, and millions of pixels. Incoherent pump light from a control projector tunes each PhC cavity via the free-carrier dispersion effect, thereby modulating the coherent probe field emitted from the cavity array. The use of high-Q/V semiconductor cavities enables energy-efficient all-optical control and eliminates the need for individual tuning elements, which degrade the performance and limit the size of the optical surface. Using this technique, an SLM with 106 pixels, micron-order pixel pitch, and GHz-order refresh rates could be realized with less than 1 W of pump power.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation of and claims the priority benefit,under 35 U.S.C. 120, of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/872,731, filed May12, 2020, which claims the priority benefit, under 35 U.S.C. 119(e), ofU.S. Application No. 62/873,232, filed on Jul. 12, 2019, each of whichis incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The generation and manipulation of structured light via spatial lightmodulators (SLMs) has become central to modern science and technology.Commercially available SLMs are ubiquitous, with common applicationsranging from projectors to imagers and even manufacturing tools. In thelaboratory, optical microscopy, metrology, imaging, and manipulationexperiments leverage the dynamic reconfigurability of SLMs to controloptical fields. For example, recent SLM-enabled demonstrations haveincluded terahertz compressive imaging, deep-tissue imaging, trapping ofsingle atoms in arbitrary lattices, and re-configurable integratedphotonic switches.

However, despite their importance, modern commercial SLMs are limited bytheir operating principles. These devices can be broadly classified intotwo categories: liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) SLMs and digitalmicromirror devices (DMDs). The frame rate of LCOS-based SLMs, whichtypically provide phase modulation by reorienting birefringent liquidcrystals with an applied voltage, is limited to ˜100 Hz by the LCnatural response time. These LC response times are even longer at longerwavelengths, such as those used for infrared (IR) telecommunications,due to the need for thicker liquid crystal layers. DMDs offer on-offswitching based on the electrically-controlled displacement of a MEMSmirror, and therefore enable modulation rates on the order of 10-100kHz. However, their binary modulation significantly impairs theachievable diffraction efficiency (the ratio of energy in the first- andzeroth-order diffraction patterns) to roughly 30% of that of a typicalLCOS SLM. MEMS deformable-mirrors (MEMS-DM) offer an alternativeapproach with excellent efficiency; however, the typical pixel pitch ofa MEMS-DM is much greater than that of the controlled light. In fact,both LCOS and DMD techniques generally feature micron-order pixelpitches, which limits their use in applications such as IR beam steeringwhere subwavelength (λ/2) values are desired.

Research devices have attempted to address these deficiencies. Due toits commercial feasibility and maturity, silicon photonics has attractedsignificant interest, yielding phase modulated arrays of 8×8, and morerecently 32×32 vertical grating couplers. The demonstrated powerefficiency and modulation rates, however, are both limited by the use ofthermo-optic phase shifters, which have microsecond-order response timesand require approximately 10 mW of power to generate a π phase shift.While the incorporation of a free-carrier based phase shifter within amicro-ring or micro-disc resonator could simultaneously reduce theswitching energy to roughly femtojoules and increase the modulation rateto roughly gigahertz, the additional element would further increase thepixel pitch, which is already limited by the large (several squaremicron) sizes of vertical grating couplers. Given these limitations, theperformance and scale of photonic integrated circuit (PIC) SLMs has yetto exceed that of other commercial solutions.

SUMMARY

A spatial light modulator (SLM) includes a layer patterned with atwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities, the two-dimensionalarray of semiconductor cavities scattering signal light at a resonantwavelength. The SLM also includes at least one incoherent light source,in optical communication with the two-dimensional array of semiconductorcavities, to tune the resonant wavelength of at least one semiconductorcavity in the two-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities viaoptical free carrier injection. In some cases, the at least oneincoherent light source comprises a two-dimensional array oflight-emitting diodes (LEDs). In some cases, the SLM further includes acontrol layer, operably coupled to the two-dimensional array of LEDs, tomodulate LEDs in the two-dimensional array of LEDs at a rate of at least10 MHz, at least 1 GHz, and/or the like. In some cases, the SLM alsoincludes a signal waveguide layer, in optical communication with thetwo-dimensional array of LEDs and the two-dimensional array ofsemiconductor cavities, to image optical free carriers emitted by thetwo-dimensional array of LEDs onto the two-dimensional array ofsemiconductor cavities.

A SLM includes a resonant surface to reflect and/or transmit incidentlight at a resonant wavelength, and at least one light source, inoptical communication with the resonant surface, to locally tune theresonant wavelength of the resonant surface via optical free carrierinjection. In some cases, the at least one incoherent light sourcecomprises a two-dimensional array of light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Insome cases, the SLM further includes a control layer, operably coupledto the two-dimensional array of LEDs, to modulate LEDs in thetwo-dimensional array of LEDs at a rate of at least 1 GHz. In somecases, the SLM also includes a signal waveguide layer in opticalcommunication with the two-dimensional array of LEDs and thetwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities, to image optical freecarriers emitted by the two-dimensional array of LEDs onto thetwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities.

A SLM includes a photonic crystal (PhC) cavity array to reflect and/ortransmit incident light at a resonant wavelength, the PhC cavity havinga ratio of quality factor Q to mode volume V of at least about 100. TheSLM also includes a two-dimensional array of light-emitting diodes(LEDs), in optical communication with the PhC cavity array, to locallytune the resonant wavelength of the PhC cavity array via optical freecarrier injection. The SLM further includes a two-dimensional array ofcomplementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) controllers, operablycoupled to the two-dimensional array of LEDs, to modulate LEDs in thetwo-dimensional array of LEDs at a rate of at least 10 MHz.

In some cases, a distributed resonator—such as a slab photonic crystalguided mode resonator—can be used instead of the two-dimensional array.Similar to the two-dimensional array, the resonant frequency of theguided mode resonator may be locally tuned via free carrier injectionfrom an incoherent light source. The guided mode resonator can also haveabout unity reflection efficiency, which provides high diffractionefficiency due to the distributed resonant mode, and avoids the need tocouple into individual resonators.

The incoherent light source may be a two-dimensional array oflight-emitting diodes (LEDs). In this case, the SLM may include acontrol layer operably coupled to the two-dimensional array of LEDs anda two-dimensional signal waveguide layer in optical communication withthe two-dimensional array of LEDs and the two-dimensional array ofsemiconductor cavities. The control layer modulates LEDs in thetwo-dimensional array of LEDs at a rate of at least 10 MHz, at least 1GHz, and/or the like. The waveguide layer images optical free carriersemitted by the two-dimensional array of LEDs onto the two-dimensionalarray of semiconductor cavities. These optical free carriers emitted bythe two-dimensional array of LEDs can be at a wavelength of less than500 nm and the signal light can be at a wavelength of more than 500 nm.

The SLM may also include a signal light waveguide layer, in opticalcommunication with the semiconductor layer, to guide the signal light tothe semiconductor cavity. A signal light source, in opticalcommunication with the signal waveguide layer, can launch the signallight into the signal waveguide layer.

All combinations of the foregoing concepts and additional conceptsdiscussed in greater detail below (provided such concepts are notmutually inconsistent) are part of the inventive subject matterdisclosed herein. In particular, all combinations of claimed subjectmatter appearing at the end of this disclosure are part of the inventivesubject matter disclosed herein. The terminology used herein that alsomay appear in any disclosure incorporated by reference should beaccorded a meaning most consistent with the particular conceptsdisclosed herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

The skilled artisan will understand that the drawings primarily are forillustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of theinventive subject matter described herein. The drawings are notnecessarily to scale; in some instances, various aspects of theinventive subject matter disclosed herein may be shown exaggerated orenlarged in the drawings to facilitate an understanding of differentfeatures. In the drawings, like reference characters generally refer tolike features (e.g., functionally similar and/or structurally similarelements).

FIG. 1A shows a transmission-mode all-optical spatial light modulator(SLM).

FIG. 1B shows a reflection-mode all-optical SLM.

FIG. 1C shows a reflection-mode all-optical spatial light modulator(SLM) using a guided mode resonator to shape reflected light.

FIG. 2A shows a transmission-mode all-optical SLM with micropillarcavities.

FIG. 2B shows one of the micropillar cavities of FIG. 2A in greaterdetail.

FIG. 3A shows an H1 PhC cavity array for an all-optical SLM.

FIG. 3B shows an L4/3 PhC cavity array for an all-optical SLM.

FIG. 3C shows a heterostructure cavity with a resonant mode at the gammapoint that is vertically confined by symmetry protection.

FIG. 4 shows a thermal model for the nonlinear resonator cavity array.

FIG. 5A shows a transient numerical solution of Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters listed in Table 1 assuming a square wave pump input(dashed line), for carrier density.

FIG. 5B shows a transient numerical solution of Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters listed in Table 1 assuming a square wave pump input(dashed line), for membrane temperature.

FIG. 5C shows a transient numerical solution of Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters listed in Table 1 assuming a square wave pump input(dashed line), for resonance shift.

FIG. 6A shows a periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters of Table 1, for carrier density.

FIG. 6B shows a periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters of Table 1, for membrane temperature.

FIG. 6C shows a periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters of Table 1, for resonance shift.

FIG. 7A shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 whent_(ox) is reduced to 0.5 μm to minimize membrane heating, for carrierdensity.

FIG. 7B shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 whent_(ox) is reduced to 0.5 μm to minimize membrane heating, for membranetemperature.

FIG. 7C shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 whent_(ox) is reduced to 0.5 μm to minimize membrane heating, for resonanceshift.

FIG. 8A shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for ashorter 10 ns pump period T, showing the possibility of fast switchingwhen T˜τ_(n), for carrier density.

FIG. 8B shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for ashorter 10 ns pump period T, showing the possibility of fast switchingwhen T˜τ_(n), for membrane temperature.

FIG. 8C shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for ashorter 10 ns pump period T, showing the possibility of fast switchingwhen T˜τ_(n), for resonance shift.

FIG. 9A shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 forT=τ_(n), which limits switching contrast, for carrier density.

FIG. 9B shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 forT=τ_(n), which limits switching contrast, for membrane temperature.

FIG. 9C shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 forT=τ_(n), which limits switching contrast, for resonance shift.

FIG. 10A shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for asmaller unit cell membrane (A_(m)=7a×7a), which results in substantialtemperature deviations but maintains switching contrast, for carrierdensity.

FIG. 10B shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for asmaller unit cell membrane (A_(m)=7a×7a), which results in substantialtemperature deviations but maintains switching contrast, for membranetemperature.

FIG. 10C shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16 for asmaller unit cell membrane (A_(m)=7a×7a), which results in substantialtemperature deviations but maintains switching contrast, for resonanceshift.

FIG. 11A shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16, withan enhanced switching contrast due to an enhanced carrier density whenτ_(n) is reduced to 100 ps, for carrier density.

FIG. 11B shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16, withan enhanced switching contrast due to an enhanced carrier density whenτ_(n) is reduced to 100 ps, for membrane temperature.

FIG. 11C shows the periodic steady state solution to Eqns. 14-16, withan enhanced switching contrast due to an enhanced carrier density whenτ_(n) is reduced to 100 ps, for resonance shift.

FIG. 12A shows bandgap width (left plot), center position (center plot),and design deviation (right plot) (Eqn. 17) fora 1.55 μm centerwavelength for a lattice design for t_(slab)=220 nm-thick silicon slabwith a surrounding oxide cladding.

FIG. 12B shows a model of an example design lattice with r=0.262a anda=410 nm.

FIG. 12C shows the band structure of even and odd guided modes forr=0.379a and a=505 nm.

FIG. 12D shows a model of another example design lattice with r=0.379aand a=505 nm.

FIG. 12E shows the band structure of even and odd guided modes forr=0.379a and a=505 nm.

FIG. 13A shows bandgap width (left plot), center position (center plot),and design deviation (right plot) (Eqn. 17) fora 1.55 μm centerwavelength for a lattice design for t_(slab)=220 nm-thick silicon slabwith a surrounding air cladding.

FIG. 13B shows a model of another example design lattice with r=0.267aand a=445 nm.

FIG. 13C shows the band structure of even and odd guided modes forr=0.267a and a=445 nm.

FIG. 14 shows the mode profile of an optimized oxide-clad silicon H1 PhCcavity produced via numerical optimization of quality factor in MEEP.

FIG. 15 shows the mode profile of an optimized oxide-clad silicon L4/3PhC cavity produced via numerical optimization of quality factor inMEEP.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The spatial light modulators (SLMs) as described here address many ofthe deficiencies of conventional SLMs. Such an SLM may include a layer(e.g., a silicon layer) patterned with a two-dimensional array ofsemiconductor cavities and at least one incoherent light source, inoptical communication with the two-dimensional array of semiconductorcavities. In operation, the two-dimensional array of semiconductorcavities scatters signal light at a resonant wavelength. And theincoherent light source tunes the resonant wavelength of at least onesemiconductor cavity in the two-dimensional array of semiconductorcavities via optical free carrier injection.

Each semiconductor cavity in the two-dimensional array of semiconductorcavities can have a quality factor Q of at least 1000. Thetwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities can be comprised of H1photonic crystal cavities, L3 photonic crystal cavities, L4/3 photoniccrystal cavities, or micropillar cavities. It may have a pitch equal toabout half the resonant wavelength to about the resonant wavelength.

All-optical control can overcome the fundamental scaling limitassociated with individual control elements, which can be describedgenerally as follows. The number of pixels that can be placed within anarray of area A scales directly with A, but the number of controlelements that fit through the perimeter scales as √{square root over(A)}. However, with all optical control, electronic controls don't needto be routed through a single layer to each pixel. When the electroniccontrol employs CMOS control of the light source, 3D control electronicscan be employed while keeping a single optical layer. Optical controlcan also allow for the emitters to be spread out more, as they can beimaged onto the semiconductor layer with variable magnification. Theseall-optical SLM designs and techniques are different thanoptically-addressed spatial light modulators, which can featureoptically-written control masks but are still fundamentally limited bythe slow response of the liquid crystal control medium.

A fast, efficient, low-pitch, and large scale SLM can directly impact avariety of existing fields and unveil entirely new avenues of research.Real-time, sub-diffraction-limited optical microscopy, ultra-denseoptical interconnects, high-rate LiDAR, optical neural networks,topological quantum optics, and large-scale control of atomic ensemblesfor quantum science are a few envisioned applications that illustratethe diversity of foreseeable uses.

Example Spatial Light Modulators

FIG. 1A shows an example transmission-mode all-optical spatial lightmodulator (SLM) 105. The SLM 105 includes a cavity array 110 ofsemiconductor cavities 115, a signal light waveguide/waveguide array120, an incoherent light projector array 125, and a CMOS control array130.

The cavity array 110 can generally be structured as a 2D semiconductorcavity array of high-index cavities 115—with high experimental qualityfactor (Q) to mode volume (V_(eff)) ratios—creates a narrow-pitchlattice of localized modes when resonant signal light illuminates thesurface of the cavity array 110. The quality factor (Q) can be about1000, about 10,000, about 100,000, about 500,000, about 1,000,000,including all values and sub-ranges in between. The mode volume(V_(eff)) can be from about 0.1(λ/n)³ to about 5(λ/n)³, including allvalues and sub-ranges in between. The ratio Q/V_(eff) can be from about100 to about 10⁷, including all values and sub-ranges in between. FIG.1A shows the array 110 as a photonic crystal cavity (PhC) array, butother vertically-coupled resonator types (e.g., micropillar,Fabry-Perot, and/or the like) can also be employed.

With an electro-refractive substrate material such as silicon, theamplitude and phase of each resonator's highly-confined mode can bemodified via the plasma dispersion effect by injecting free carriersinto the cavities 115. Since the strength of such free carrier nonlineareffects scales with Q/V_(eff), fJ-order switching energies are possiblefor each mode. Free carriers can be injected optically at a wavelengthbelow the modulation wavelength such that individual control elements onthe optical surface of the cavity 110—which can both limit the spacingbetween and quality of optical resonators—are eliminated. The pitchconcerns associated with traditional PIC components (thermo-optic phaseshifters and grating couplers) can also be mitigated by introducingnanoscale integrated gratings into the PhC hole lattice, whichsimultaneously affords high-Q and efficient vertical coupling of eachresonator mode out of the cavity 110. The viability of producingfoundry-based PhC cavities has been established via photolithographicpatterning. The 2D resonator array 110 can leverage such recentmanufacturing advances to harness the enhanced light-matter interactioncharacteristic of PhC cavities, yielding an ultra-dense,energy-efficient modulator array.

The 2D signal light waveguide 120, also sometimes referred to simply asa waveguide, is optional, and can be employed, particularly in the fullyintegrated (transmission-mode) format of FIG. 1A, to efficientlydistribute coherent light signal from a single signal laser to the PhCcavities 115, although any suitable distribution optics may be employed.For example, given a large enough array, an incident free space signalbeam could be reflected from (depending on the coupling conditions) thePhC surface, as illustrated and described for FIG. 1B. When the array120 is used, both the coherent signal beam as well as the incoherentcontrol light can pass through the array 120.

In this modality, the SLM 105 can serve as a high-performance, multimodemodulating retro-reflector. In some cases, the external signal light canbe removed altogether by integrating active layers into the photoniccrystal surface, thus forming an array of nanocavity light-emittingdiodes (LEDs). The waveguide 120 can include, for example, atwo-dimensional silicon waveguide array or an appropriately designedoxide slab. This slab or waveguide array can be any suitable design thatequally distributes signal light power to each of the pixels.

The incoherent light projector array 125 can be employed to generateshort-wavelength, incoherent, control/pump light to optically tune eachresonator via the free carrier dispersion effect. Short wavelengths(e.g., less than about 500 nm) can be useful to achieve sufficientabsorption in the thin PhC cavity array 110, which could, for example,be fabricated in the 220 nm silicon layer offered in standard SOI CMOSprocesses. In some cases (not shown), this control light could be simplyimaged onto the surface of the array 110 using a high-resolutionexternal display. For example, the high-resolution display light can becollected by a lens and imaged with variable magnification onto thecavity array 110. Alternatively, the high-resolution display light canbe columnated by a collection lens and imaged through aninfinity-corrected objective onto the cavity array 110. FIG. 1Aillustrates a more integrated solution that includes the projector array125 as, for example, a 2D array of incoherent emitters 128 such as shortwavelength emitters. For example, the emitters 128 can be LEDs, verticalcavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs), and/or the like. As oneexample, gallium nitride (GaN) LEDs, with ˜450 nm emission wavelengths,may be employed. Individual GaN LEDs with GHz modulation bandwidths havebeen demonstrated, along with arrays with integrated micro-lenses andpitches of 10 μm or less.

The CMOS control array 130 is optional, and is employed for electroniccontrol of individual emitters of the light projector array 125. Thecontrol array 130 can be configured to drive the emitters of theprojector array 125 at a modulation rate of about 1 Hz, about 1 MHz,about 10 MHz, about 100 MHz, about 500 MHz, about 1 GHz, including allvalues and sub-ranges in between. Each pixel of the control array 130can include, for example, a CMOS transistor to switch the connectedemitter. The control array 130 pixels can also include local memoryand/or digital-to-analog converters (DACs) to enable greyscalemodulation of the incoherent emitters using locally stored patterns.

During use, in the illustrated transmission mode in FIG. 1A, a coherentsignal light 118 is coupled into the array 110 of the high-qualityfactor (Q) (e.g., a Q of at least about 1000), low-mode volume (V_(eff))semiconductor cavities 115 using the 2D signal waveguide 120, whichallows the transmitted electromagnetic field to be shaped. Theincoherent pump light projector 125—illustrated in FIG. 1A as a galliumnitride LED array emitting light at 450 nm—is imaged onto the cavityarray 110 to control each resonant mode via the free carrier dispersioneffect. Photoexcited carriers from the absorption of short-wavelengthpump light enable fast (e.g., GHz range), low-energy (fJ-order)switching of signal modes due to the high Q/V_(eff) ratio (e.g., a ratioof at least about 100) of the semiconductor cavities. Silicon photoniccrystal cavities, which enable record high Q/V_(eff) ratios usingfoundry fabrication processes, are shown in FIG. 1A as an exampleimplementation of this cavity array 120. However, other semiconductorcavities—including micro-posts and vertical Fabry-Perot resonators—couldalso be switched by the control projector array 125. FIG. 1A alsoillustrates a plane 140 where, for example, a detector or other sensingdevice may be placed to receive the output light signal from the SLM105.

The SLM 105 can efficiently generate incoherent modulated light fromcoherent modulated light based on several beneficial features. Forexample, the SLM 105 design permits fast modulation rates that canenable modern interconnects and novel applications. The micron-orderpixel pitches can increase space-bandwidth product, increase fillfactor, and enable 180° beam steering. The fJ-order pixel tuning energyenables low-power control of large cavity arrays, and mature fabricationtechniques can allow for scaling to several million elements/cavities.

FIG. 1B illustrates an alternative, reflection mode design of an SLM205, where signal light can simply be reflected from the cavity array,and no signal light waveguide is required. This reflection-mode,all-optical SLM 205 is illustrated with a cavity array 210 (e.g.,structurally and/or functionally similar to the array 110) ofsemiconductor cavities 215 (e.g., structurally and/or functionallysimilar to the cavities 115), an incoherent light projector array 225(e.g., structurally and/or functionally similar to the light projectorarray 125), and an optional CMOS control array 230 (e.g., structurallyand/or functionally similar to the control array 130). Here, the signallight waveguide 125 of FIG. 1A is omitted, and signal light 235 from asignal light source 240 instead reflects off the surface of the cavityarray 210 and can be captured, such as by a sensing device at a plane245. FIG. 1B also illustrates separation of the specular and cavityreflections based on the off-axis incidence of the signal light 235. Insome cases normal excitation (signal beam shone vertically down ontocavity array 210) can be employed such as, for example, using apolarizing beam splitter instead used to separate the direct reflectionand cavity reflection, since these two reflections have orthogonalpolarizations if the incident polarization angle is 45 degrees off-axiswith the dominant cavity polarization.

FIG. 1C shows another reflection mode SLM 305. This reflection-mode,all-optical spatial light modulator 305 includes a resonant surface 310,an incoherent light projector array 325 (e.g., structurally and/orfunctionally similar to the light projector array 125), and an optionalCMOS control array 330 (e.g., structurally and/or functionally similarto the control array 130). Generally, instead of a 2D semiconductorcavity array, a resonant surface can be used to reflect incident lightwith about near unity reflection efficiency. Free carriers can beoptically injected in arbitrary patterns to provide the local resonanceshifts desired to shape the amplitude or phase of the reflected light.The resonant surface can be any suitable sub-wavelength layer having a2D layout of oscillators formed or deposited on it.

Here, the 2D microcavity array 210 of FIG. 1B is replaced with aresonant surface 310. The resonant surface 310 can be structured as awavelength-scale patterned semiconductor slab that supports adistributed resonant mode such, for example, guided mode resonance. Theresonant surface can include, for example, a square or hexagonal latticeof holes in a semiconductor slab which is designed to supportvertically-coupled guided mode resonances at the desired frequency.

The resonant surface 310 reflects signal light 335 from a light source340 to generate an output signal that can be captured, such as by asensing device at a plane 345. Generally, PhC cavities can providehigh-Q diffraction-limited confinement of optical modes, but can requireprecise coupling and fabrication. Guided mode resonators (GMRs) on theother hand, such as the surface 310, while providing modest qualityfactors, can be formed with a defect-free PhC lattice, and beintrinsically vertically coupled. Coupled bilayer photonic crystal slabscan be used to improve the achievable GMR quality factor. The GMR can belocally tuned optically by injecting free carriers with arbitrarypatterns. This enables the amplitude and phase of the reflected light tobe tuned as desired at spatial resolution approaching λ/2. The confinedGMR modes exhibit large overlap with the injected free carriers andproduce Fano reflection profiles due to interference between the directreflection of incident light and vertical resonator leakage. Combined,these characteristics allow for efficient modulation of the reflectionamplitude and phase with low power optical free carrier injection. Whileillustrated here for a reflection mode SLM design, a resonant surfacecan also be employed in transmission mode SLM designs, such as thatillustrated in FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2A shows a transmission-mode all-optical spatial light modulator405 that includes a cavity array 410 (e.g., structurally and/orfunctionally similar to the array 110), a signal light waveguide 420(e.g., structurally and/or functionally similar to the waveguide 120),an incoherent light projector array 425 (e.g., structurally and/orfunctionally similar to the light projector array 125), and an optionalcontrol array 430 (e.g., structurally and/or functionally similar to thecontrol array 130). Here, the cavity array includes micropillar cavities415 instead of the photonic crystal cavities 115 of FIG. 1A. Themicropillar cavities 415 of FIG. 2A can also be used in areflection-mode all-optical SLM, e.g., in the SLM 205, by eliminatingthe signal light waveguide 220 in FIG. 1B and replacing the photoniccrystal cavity array with these micropillar cavities. FIG. 2Aillustrates the micropillar cavities 415 and incoherent light projectorsof the projector array 425 as being arranged on the same lattice, withone micropillar cavity per incoherent light projector (e.g., per LED).

FIG. 2B shows a vertical micropillar cavity 415 suitable for use in theall-optical SLM 405 of FIG. 2A. The micropillar cavity 415 includes acentral, low-bandgap cavity region 415 a where the peak intensity region415 b of the optical mode is located and incoherent pump light isabsorbed. Distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs) 415 c 1, 415 c 2comprising quarter-wavelength layers 415 d of alternating high/low indexdielectrics (e.g., TiO₂/SiO₂, InGaAsP/InP, or Si/SiO₂) are formed on top(the DBR 415 c 1) and bottom (the DBR 415 c 2) of the central cavityregion 415 b. The DBRs 415 c 1, 415 c 2 can confine light within themicropillar cavity 415 and set the desired coupling condition (under,over, or critically coupled) of signal light. These insulating DBRs 415c 1, 415 c 2 also limit the diffusion of photogenerated charge carriers,increasing the overlap between free carriers and the optical mode.Towards the center of the cavity 415, the DBR layer thickness isadiabatically reduced to gently confine the mode, thus enhancing theachievable quality factor. The micropillar configuration of the cavity415 can enhance vertical coupling at the cost of reduced quality factor.The cavity's quality factor can be from about 1000 to about 10,000. Halfwavelength spacing (as also illustrated in FIG. 2B) between eachmicropillar cavity is possible for signal wavelengths from the visibleto the infrared (IR) (e.g., 1300 nm to 1700 nm).

The optically tuned array of nanophotonic resonators, shown in FIGS. 1Aand 1B as photonic crystal cavities and FIG. 2A as micropillar cavities,and tunable resonant surface (FIG. 1C) simultaneously achieve thedesirable SLM performance metrics using the following components:

Generally referring to FIGS. 1A-1C, 2A-2B, the combination of thesecomponents—the cavity array (whether the optically tuned PhC arrays ofFIGS. 1A and 1B, the tunable resonant surface of FIG. 1C, or themicropillar cavities FIGS. 2A, 2B), the light projector array, thesignal light waveguide (in some cases), and the optional projectorcontrol array—can enable fast, energy-efficient, all-optical conversionof incoherent light into a dense array of coherent, modulated signalmodes. The SLM designs and signal generation approaches described canleverage the fabrication maturity of silicon photonics but circumventthe traditional limitations of PIC components by incorporatingoptically-controlled, vertically-coupled photonic crystal cavities.

Example Analysis of Performance of an all-Optical SLM

The device performance of any of the SLMs described here can beapproximated generally as follows. Assume that the absorbed pump light(e.g., from a light projector array) excites N_(abs) free carrier pairswithin a cavity's mode volume V_(eff). According to perturbation theory,the free carrier dispersion effect then (nearly instantaneously) shiftsthe cavity resonance frequency ω₀ by (see below for derivation)

$\begin{matrix}{\frac{\Delta\omega_{0}}{\Gamma_{l}} = {{- \gamma}\frac{Q_{l}}{V_{eff}}N_{abs}}} & (1)\end{matrix}$

where Q_(l)=ω₀Γ_(l) is the loaded quality-factor of the resonator (givena loaded decay rate Γ_(l)) and γ is a material dependent “scatteringvolume” that serves as the constant of proportionality between carrierdensity and the fractional index change |δn/n|. In silicon, γ can beapproximated in two ways: using the high-frequency limit of the Drudemodel or by linearizing the empirical formula

Δn _(Si) =p(λ)[n _(e) ·cm ³]^(q(λ)) −r(λ)[n _(h) ·cm ³]^(s(λ)),  (2)

where n_(e)=N_(abs)/V_(eff)(n_(h)) is the free electron (hole) density,and p, q, r, and s, are wavelength dependent coefficients. Eqn. (2)follows from absorption measurements in silicon for wavelengths between1.3 and 14 μm. For a signal wavelength λ_(s) of 1.55 μm, these twomethods yield γ≈3×10⁻⁸ and γ≈7×10⁻⁹, respectively. The latter value isemployed in subsequent calculations to yield a conservativeapproximation. The maximum allowable Q_(l) for each SLM pixel isdictated by the desired modulation frequency. For modulation frequencieson the order of 10 GHz, Q_(l) is limited to ˜10⁴. Finally, a diffractionlimited mode volume V_(eff) on the order of 0.1(λ_(s)/n_(Si))³ ischosen. Given that PhC cavities with ultrahigh-Q values on the order ofa million are routinely fabricated (even in foundry-based CMOSprocesses) and sub-diffraction limited mode volumes of ˜10⁻³(λ_(s)/n_(Si))³ have been demonstrated, the selected parametersrepresent a readily fabricable PhC cavity. Combining the selectedmetrics, it is found that

N _(abs)≈1.4×10³  (3)

free carrier pairs shift the frequency of the resonant cavity onelinewidth (Δω₀/Γ_(l)=1). In terms of pump energy, a one million pixelarray (d_(array)=10⁶) operated at a 1 GHz modulation frequency (f_(mod))would then use

P _(pump) ^(abs) =hω _(pump) N _(abs) f _(mod) d _(array)≈0.6 W  (4)

of absorbed light assuming a 450 nm pump wavelength λ_(pump). If oneaccounts for imperfect absorption of the pump light in a 220 nm-thicksilicon membrane (see Table 1 for parameter details) the total inputpump power is

p _(pump) ^(total)≈0.9 W.  (5)

This is an upper bound on the pump power incident on the PhC cavityarray, as it is assumed that every pixel is modulated on-off at 1 GHz.In practice, not all pixels would be tuned in every modulation period.With these metrics in mind, targeted performance parameters are an arraysize of at least 1 megapixel (MP), a pixel pitch of 1.55 μm, a refreshrate of 10⁹ Hz, and a control power of less than 1 W.

Example 1

High-Q, Vertically-Coupled PhC Cavities

An all-optical SLM uses PhC cavities with two conflictingcharacteristics: high-Q and efficient vertical coupling. For example, arelatively higher Q cavity traps light for a longer time than one with alower Q. However, good vertical coupling can mean that light can get inand out easily. An integrated grating as described here can optimize Qwhile simultaneously shaping the far field profile such that most of thelight loss is collectable. High quality-factor PhC cavities aretypically designed with “gentle confinement” to reduce out-of-planeleakage, resulting in a weak free-space coupling. However, severaltechniques have been proposed and demonstrated to overcome thislimitation. Cavity-specific designs have shown that near-field shapingcan produce Gaussian-like far-field radiation patterns which yieldcollection efficiencies greater than 80%. Alternatively, “band folding”with an integrated grating serves as a general, fabrication-tolerantapproach to improving the collection efficiency of various PhC cavities.In this scheme, a periodic lattice perturbation—typically an increase inhole radius—at twice the lattice period a “folds” Fourier componentslocated near the edge of the Brillouin zone (k_(∥)=π/a) down to the Γ(k_(∥)=0) point, thereby enhancing vertical emission. Experimentalimplementations and theoretical analyses for L3, L5, and L7 cavitieshave demonstrated the possibility of achieving Q˜10⁵ with 50% verticalcoupling efficiency.

FIGS. 3A-3C show cavity arrays with integrated gratings, where shadingdifferentiates several modifications to the hole lattice. FIG. 3A showsthe first array, which is composed of H1 cavities, each formed byremoving a single hole 310, optimized by shifting three hexagonal layersof holes, and vertically-coupled with the addition of an integratedgrating.

FIG. 3B shows how the cavity array can be formed with the “L4/3” cavity,where four holes 320 (bold circles in FIG. 3B) are added in place of thethree holes 330 removed for a standard L3 cavity. This design is moreamenable to photolithographic fabrication than an L3 cavity (opticalproximity effects are minimized by reducing location variation in holedensity), and affords low volume, high-Q, resonant modes. The resonantwavelength can also be readily tuned by varying the radius of the fourinternal holes 320.

The cavity designs illustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B have cavity pitchesbetween one and two wavelengths for a 1.5 μm signal wavelength, acontrol wavelength of less than about 500 nm, and a ˜400 nm latticeconstant. While this spacing can reduce or minimize coupling betweencavities, other designs could attain subwavelength pitches with the useof a cavity-specific vertical coupling technique. For example,micro-post cavities with integrated dielectric reflectors would enablesubwavelength pitches.

FIG. 3C shows a heterostructure cavity with a resonant mode at the gammapoint (vertical wavevector) that is vertically confined by symmetryprotection (this is a so called “bounded in the continuum state”).Lateral confinement is provided by tapering the radii of the holes (r₁,r₂, and r₃. in FIG. 3C) in a hexagonal pattern. Similar to themicropillar design in FIG. 2A, this cavity enhances vertical coupling atthe expense of reduced quality factor (e.g., a quality factor on theorder of 10,000). Since vertical coupling can be limited by symmetry(the optical mode and vertically propagating plane waves have oppositesymmetry), the index contrast between the slab core and cladding can bereduced, allowing more material combinations to be used (one example issilicon nitride in a silicon dioxide cladding, which is often offered infoundry processes).

All-Optical Tuning

Each PhC cavity in the all-optical SLM is tuned via optical carrierinjection. Here, the physical effects of optical carrier injection-basedtuning of a photonic crystal cavity array are further explored, and amodel to compare the effects of competing free carrier and thermalnonlinearities is described. With the results of this model, thearchitecture's limitations and solutions to these limitations arediscussed, and also described several enhancements and modifications ofthe structure that enhance performance.

Free Carrier Dispersion

Free carrier dispersion yields a complex permittivity shift Δϵ that,according to first order perturbation theory, induces a fractionalcavity resonance shift

$\begin{matrix}{\frac{\Delta\omega_{0}}{\omega_{0}} = {{- \frac{1}{2}}{\frac{\int_{- \infty}^{\infty}{d^{3}\overset{\rightarrow}{r}{{\Delta\epsilon}\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}{{\overset{\rightarrow}{E}\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}}^{2}}}{\int_{- \infty}^{\infty}{d^{3}\overset{\rightarrow}{r}{\epsilon\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}{{\overset{\rightarrow}{E}\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}}^{2}}}.}}} & (6)\end{matrix}$

For a uniform, perturbative index change throughout the volumecontaining free carriers (V_(FC))—assumed to be greater than or equal tothe cavity mode volume V_(eff)=∫d³{right arrow over (r)}ϵ({right arrowover (r)})|{right arrow over (E)}({right arrow over(r)})|²/max{ϵ|E|²}—Eqn. 6 simplifies to

$\begin{matrix}{{{\frac{\Delta\omega_{0}}{\omega_{0}} \approx {{- \frac{\Delta n}{n}}\frac{\int_{V_{FC}}{d^{3}\overset{\rightarrow}{r}{\epsilon\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}{{\overset{\rightarrow}{E}\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}}^{2}}}{\int_{\infty}{d^{3}\overset{\rightarrow}{r}{\epsilon\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}{{\overset{\rightarrow}{E}\left( \overset{\rightarrow}{r} \right)}}^{2}}}} \approx {- \frac{\Delta n}{n}}} = {\gamma n_{c}}},} & (7)\end{matrix}$

where one can approximate Δn≈(Δϵ/2ϵ)n and define −γ as the constant ofproportionality between Δn/n and carrier density (n_(c)=#/V_(FC)).

In silicon, Δn is primarily a result of coulomb interactions with thefree carrier, while Burstein-Moss band-filling is negligible. Therefore,a simple Drude model analysis of this process estimates that theinjection of carriers with a density n_(c) shift the complexpermittivity ϵ by

$\begin{matrix}{{\Delta\epsilon} = {\frac{q_{e}^{2}n_{c}}{j\omega_{s}\epsilon_{0}}\left\lbrack {\frac{\tau_{e}}{m_{e}^{*}\left( {1 + {j\omega_{s}\tau_{e}}} \right)} + \frac{\tau_{h}}{m_{h}^{*}\left( {1 + {j\omega_{s}\tau_{h}}} \right)}} \right\rbrack}} & (8)\end{matrix}$

where q_(e) is the electron charge, ϵ₀ is the vacuum permittivity, ω_(s)is the signal beam's frequency, and τ and m* are the effective mass andmean collision time of the free charge carriers (electrons for “e”subscripts, and holes for “h” subscripts), respectively. The meancollision time governs the resulting behavior, and can be approximatedusing the experimentally measured mobilities μ_(e)≈1.5×10³ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹,μ_(h)≈500 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ and effective masses m_(e)*=0.26m_(e),m_(h)*=0.39m_(e) of free carriers in undoped silicon at roomtemperature, which yields τ_(e)=μ_(e)m_(e)*/q_(e)≈0.22 ps andτ_(h)=μ_(h)m_(h)*/q_(e)≈0.11 ps. For a signal wavelength of λ_(s)=1.55μm, the high-frequency limit ω_(s)τ>>1 of Equation 9 for a weaklyabsorbing medium yields a frequency shift governed by

$\begin{matrix}{\gamma = {{{- \frac{\Delta n_{si}}{n_{Si}}}n_{c}} = {\frac{q_{e}^{2}}{2n_{{Si}^{\epsilon_{0}\omega_{s}^{2}}}^{2}}\left\lbrack {\frac{1}{m_{e}^{*}} + \frac{1}{m_{h}^{*}}} \right\rbrack}}} & (9)\end{matrix}$

and an additional free carrier absorption loss

$\begin{matrix}{{{\Delta\alpha} = {\frac{2\pi}{\lambda_{s}}{\frac{\epsilon_{0}n_{Si}}{q_{e}^{2}n_{c}}\left\lbrack {{\tau_{e}m_{e}^{*}} + {\tau_{h}m_{h}^{*}}} \right\rbrack}\omega^{3}}}.} & (10)\end{matrix}$

This corresponding loss can be represented with an additional absorptivequality factor

$\begin{matrix}{{Q_{abs} = \frac{\Delta\alpha\lambda}{4\pi n_{Si}}}.} & (11)\end{matrix}$

Q_(abs) can be estimated directly from experimental absorption data, orfrom the Drude model, where Q_(abs)=ω_(s) ³τn_(Si)/ω_(plasma) ² for acavity resonance at ω in a material with a plasma frequencyω_(plasma)=√{square root over (n_(c)q_(e) ²/mϵ₀)}—resulting from thepresence of a carrier density n_(c) of individual charges q_(e) withmass m—and mean collision time τ as determined by the carrier mobility.This additional loss is negligible for the carrier densities requiredfor switching, as Q_(abs) is much larger than the desired loaded qualityfactors Q_(l) (˜10⁴). One can neglect switching losses and consider thereal component of the free carrier-induced index change.

Nonlinear Dynamics

While the free carrier dispersion effect's blueshift of cavityresonances enables all-optical tuning of the SLM, heating due toabsorption and carrier recombination in most thermo-optic media causesan opposing redshift. The competition between these two nonlinearitiesis typically negligible for a single, short switching event, where thenet recombination energy of carriers does not significantly change thetemperature of the PhC membrane. However, repeated switching events canlead to long-term patterning effects due to the accumulation of thermalenergy in the membrane.

FIG. 4 shows a thermal model for the nonlinear resonator array. Thecomposite device 410 is comprised of several (approximately) independentsingle-cavity unit cells 415. The device 410 generally includes a PhCcavity membrane 420, an oxide layer 425, and a metal heat sink 430. ThePhC cavity in each cell 415 is patterned into the silicon membrane 420of thickness t_(Si) which lies above the buried oxide layer 425 ofthickness t_(ox) (reflecting a CMOS SOI geometry). Incident pump light435 with power P_(pump) is absorbed within the cavity 420, generatingfree carriers that are assumed to instantly diffuse to a uniform areaπr_(n) ², where r_(n) is governed by the ambipolar diffusion coefficientD_(am) and free carrier lifetime τ_(n). Carrier relaxation heats thecavity to a temperature T_(c) as prescribed by its thermal capacitanceC_(c). Heat transfer to and from the membrane 415 (with a thermalcapacitance C_(m) at temperature T_(m)) as well as through the oxidelayer 425 to the metal heat sink 430 (temperature τ₀) occur atcharacteristic rates τ_(cm), τ_(mc), and τ_(ox), respectively. For thepurposes of the model of FIG. 4, it is assumed that the control light isexternal and imaged onto the PhC cavity.

Since the all-optical SLM relies on repeated free carrier injection, asimple model based on the diagram in FIG. 4 is described here to explorethe long-term feasibility of all-optical tuning. In this model, the PhCcavity array is decomposed into unit cells (e.g., the rectangularprism-like cell 415 in FIG. 4), each containing a single PhC cavity andassumed for simplicity to be independent of other unit cells. A periodicpump light pulse (e.g., the pump light 430 of FIG. 4) is projected ontothe cavity, resulting in the generation of photoexcited carriers whichwe assume to instantaneously diffuse to an area πr_(n) ² (shown as thelarger circle 440 in FIG. 4), where r_(n) is equal to the diffusionlength for a given carrier lifetime. The resonant frequency of thecavity instantaneously shifts by an amount proportional to the resultingfree carrier density, leading to a variation in the signal field emittedfrom the cavity. Excess energy from the absorption of above-bandgap pumplight heats the PhC cavity. The corresponding increase in cavitytemperature T_(c) depends on the cavity's material, thickness, and area(circle 445 in FIG. 4), which is assumed to be bounded by thesurrounding holes. Carrier recombination, as dictated by the freecarrier lifetime τ_(n), also leads to heating within this cavity area445. This thermal energy then diffuses (at a rate given by the material-and geometry-dependent thermal resistances; see arrows in FIG. 4.) tothe surrounding membrane at temperature T_(m) or through a buried oxidelayer to a heat sink assumed to be at a constant temperature T₀.

The described behavior is captured by the following system of firstorder differential equations:

$\begin{matrix}{{{Cavity}\mspace{14mu}{mode}\text{:}\mspace{14mu}\frac{{da}_{c}(t)}{dt}} = {{{- {j\left\lbrack {\omega - {\omega_{0}(t)}} \right\rbrack}}{a_{c}(t)}} - {\Gamma_{load}{a_{c}(t)}} + {j\sqrt{\frac{2}{\tau_{c}}s_{in}}}}} & (12) \\{{{Resonant}\mspace{14mu}{frequency}\text{:}\mspace{14mu}\frac{{\Delta\omega}_{0}(t)}{\Gamma}} = {- {\frac{Q}{n_{eff}}\left\lbrack {{\frac{{dn}_{Si}}{\underset{\underset{\alpha_{TO}}{︸}}{{dT}_{c}}}\Delta\;{T_{c}(t)}} + {\frac{{dn}_{Si}}{\underset{\underset{{- \gamma}\; n_{Si}}{︸}}{{dn}_{c}}}{n_{c}(t)}}} \right\rbrack}}} & (13) \\{{{Carrier}\mspace{14mu}{density}\text{:}\mspace{14mu}\frac{{dn}_{c}(t)}{dt}} = {\frac{n_{c}(t)}{\tau_{n}} + {\left( {1 - e^{{- {\alpha_{Si}{(\omega)}}}t_{Si}}} \right)\frac{P_{pump}(t)}{{\hslash\omega}_{pump}V_{FC}}}}} & (14) \\{{{Cavity}\mspace{14mu}{temp}\text{:}\mspace{14mu}\frac{{dT}_{c}(t)}{dt}} = {{- \frac{\overset{\overset{︸}{relaxation}}{T_{c}(t)} - T_{0}}{\tau_{ox}}} - \frac{{T_{c}(t)} - \overset{\overset{︸}{{pump}\mspace{14mu}{absorption}}}{T_{m}(t)}}{\tau_{cm}} + {C_{c}V_{FC}E_{g}\frac{n_{c}(t)}{\tau_{n}}} + {C_{c}\frac{{\hslash\omega}_{pump} - E_{g}}{{\hslash\omega}_{pump}}\left( {1 - e^{{- {\alpha_{Si}{(\omega)}}}t_{Si}}} \right)\overset{\overset{︸}{{relaxation}\mspace{14mu}{heating}}}{P_{pump}(t)}}}} & (15) \\{{{Membrane}\mspace{14mu}{temp}\text{:}\mspace{14mu}\frac{{dT}_{m}(t)}{dt}} = {{- \frac{{T_{m}(t)} - T_{0}}{\tau_{ox}}} - \frac{{T_{m}(t)} - \overset{\overset{︸}{{absorption}\mspace{14mu}{heating}}}{T_{c}(t)}}{\tau_{mc}}}} & (16)\end{matrix}$

The definitions of the model parameters, as well as their associatedvalues, and material properties of the silicon-on-insulator (SOI)architecture of interest are listed in the Table 1. Eqn. 12 describesthe evolution of the cavity signal field a_(c) (where a_(c) is energynormalized such that |a_(c)|² is the total amount of confined energy)which decays at a rate Γ_(load) and is driven by s_(in) (powernormalized; |s_(in)|²=signal drive power). The carrier density evolution(Eqn. 14) is governed by the absorption of the pump power P_(pump) andthe carrier lifetime τ_(n). The cavity and membrane temperatures, asdescribed by Eqns. 15 and 16, respectively, are coupled by conductiveheat transfer according to the parameters in Table 1. For simplicity,photo-thermal oxidation, signal light effects (free carrier absorption,two-photon absorption, etc.), and other more complex long-term effectsare neglected.

TABLE 1 Parameter Symbol Value Silicon Index

3.48 Silicon bandgap

1.11 eV Silicon absorption

(ω) variable coeff. (10⁵ m⁻¹ at 400 nm) Silicon thermo-optic coeff.$\text{?} = \frac{\text{?}}{\text{?}}$ 1.8 × 

 K⁻¹ Silicon density

2.33 g/cm³ Oxide density

2.65 g/cm³ Silicon heat capacity

1 J/g · K Oxide heat capacity

0.7 J/g · K Silicon thermal

100 W/m · K conductivity Oxide thermal

1.3 W/m · K conductivity PhC lattice constant

410 nm Silicon thickness

220 nm Oxide thickness

variable (~1 μm) Cavity area

bounded by holes around cavity perimeter (~2 

 × {square root over (3)} 

 for H1) Membrane area A_(m) variable (~10 

 × 10 

) Cavity volume

Membrane volume V_(m)

Heat sink temp. T₀ variable (~293 K) Cavity temp.

variable Membrane temp.

variable Cavity-membrane

 K/W thermal resistance Cavity thermal

capacitance Membrane thermal

capacitance Cavity-to-membrane

thermal diffusion time const. Membrane-to-cavity

thermal diffusion time const. Oxide thermal

/ 

diffusion time const. Free carrier lifetime

1 

Ambipolar carrier

19 cm²/s diffusion coeff. Free carrier diffusion

length Free carrier density

#/π 

Signal wavelength

 nm. Pump wavelength

 nm Cavity field

( 

) variable Cavity resonant

( 

) variable frequency Cavity quality factor Q

Cavity mode volume

0.1(λ/ 

)³ Pump period T variable (100 ns) Pump duty cycle η variable ( 

) Pump power P_(pump)(t) square wave with peak P_(pk), period T and dutyη

indicates data missing or illegible when filed

The following parameters in Table 1 are of particular interest:

-   -   Oxide thickness t_(ox): controls the characteristic timescale of        conduction from the membrane to the underlying heat sink    -   Membrane area A_(m): determines the thermal capacity of the PhC        slab within a unit cell (may be large enough to prevent cross        talk between unit cells)    -   Free carrier lifetime τ_(n): sets the maximum frame rate of the        device    -   Pump period T: length, relative to τ_(n), determines the carrier        buildup over time    -   Pump duty cycle η: sets the fraction of a period over which free        carrier nonlinearities dominate thermal effects

A portion of the transient numerical solution to Eqns. 14-16 for thedefault parameters listed in Table 1 is shown in FIGS. 5A-5C. A squarewave pump excitation is assumed. Since T>>τ_(n), the carrier density(FIG. 5A) decays to ˜0 during every cycle; however, the average membranetemperature (FIG. 5B) increases during each cycle. This accumulationoccurs since the characteristic timescale of conduction through theburied oxide (τ_(ox)≈2 μs) is much longer than the pump period T. Toprevent thermal accumulation when operating at modulation rates fasterthan 1/τ_(ox)˜500 kHz, a thinner oxide layer (τ_(ox)∝t_(ox) ²) orsupplemental heat sinking mechanism is used. The slab heating causes theresonance to gradually shift (FIG. 5C) until equilibrium is reached.Despite this slab heating, the distinct contributions of both freecarrier and thermal index changes are present throughout the five shownmodulation periods. The initial increase in ω₀ due to free carriersgives way to an overall decrease as heating from carrier recombinationbecomes dominant, and the average resonance shift within a modulationperiod decreases as the membrane is heated.

FIGS. 6A-6C show a numerical shooting-method solution for the periodicsteady state response. The carrier density is shown as a function oftime in FIG. 6A. The temperature is shown as a function of time in FIG.6B. The default parameters yield a negative steady state resonance shift(FIG. 6C) Δω₀/Γ of approximately one linewidth due to the ˜3Ktemperature increase of the membrane (see FIG. 6B); however, positiveand negative deviations from this equilibrium are present due to freecarrier and thermal effects. In a typical experimental setup, the signallaser would be biased about these values to achieve the desiredswitching.

FIGS. 7-10 show periodic steady state solutions for several variationsof the “parameters of interest”, and show, for each variation, carrierdensity (FIGS. 7A, 8A, 9A, 10A), membrane temperature (FIGS. 7B, 8B, 9B,10B), and resonance shift (FIGS. 7C, 8C, 9C, 10C). FIG. 6B shows that,as expected, the mean temperature increase of the membrane is reduced bya factor of about 4 when the oxide thickness is halved to 0.5 μm.Further reduction of the temperature buildup may be possible by, as anexample, by using thermally conductive vias connected directly betweenthe PhC slab and underlying heat sink—since further thinning of theoxide layer would cause the underlying metal heat sink to interfere withthe PhC cavity mode.

As illustrated in FIG. 7C, the pump period can be decreased to T=10τ_(n)without significantly reducing the switching contrast. The switchingcontrast is substantially reduced when T=τ_(n) (FIG. 8), verifying thatthe switching rate is limited by the free carrier lifetime. Although aconservative value τ_(n)=1 ns is assumed based on publishedrecombination lifetimes in PhCs, the effective lifetime is typicallymuch shorter −τ_(n)˜10 ps—possibly due to diffusion of carriers out ofthe optical mode, thus enabling switching rates of ˜10 GHz.

Reducing the free carrier lifetime limits the timescales over which freecarrier dispersion effects are dominant, as depicted in FIG. 11A forτ_(n)=100 ps. However, reducing the carrier lifetime also reduces thediffusion length, which in turn increases the effective density ofcarrier in our model and amplifies the free carrier dispersion effect.An all-optical SLM can include a charge confinement technique toincrease or maximize the carrier density within the nanocavity and acarrier lifetime control mechanism to reduce τ_(n) to the maximumpermissible value for a given modulation rate. For instance, surroundingthe cavity with an insulator (such as an oxide barrier) that preventsthe charges from diffusing would increase the carrier density. Otherways to increase the carrier density can include designing the cavitysuch that absorption happens in a small region with a sub-bandgapsemiconductor, with the rest of the cavity material having a largerbandgap.

FIGS. 10A-10C showcase two notable effects of reducing the membrane area(in this case to A_(m)=7a×7a): 1) increased steady state temperatures(see FIG. 10B) due to a reduced membrane thermal capacitance, and 2) anaccelerated roll-off of free carrier index change (see FIG. 10A) due tothe fast competing temperature rise of the reduced thermal mass.

Limitations

These examples lend insight into the dynamics of an experimental system.The experimental nonlinear switching response can be used to determinekey coefficients governing the system behavior. The results can alsomake desirable the development of techniques to circumvent aspects suchas potentially slow heat transfer between the PhC slab and underlyingheat sink that can result in significant heating of the slab, especiallyfor fast modulation rates. Another aspect to consider is that fast—asshort as 3 ps—diffusion of carriers out of the nanocavity limits theimpact of free carrier dispersion. Yet another aspect to consider isthat excessively long carrier lifetimes of ˜1 ns limit the achievableSLM frame rate to sub-GHz.

Each of these aspects can be addressed with the example enhancementsdescribed below.

Enhancements and Additional Techniques

PhC light sources: An external probe can be eliminated by using PhClight sources. Active PhC cavity emitters enable modulation rates inexcess of 100 GHz due to Purcell effect enhancement of spontaneousemission rates, fJ/bit modulation energies, and tailored emissionprofiles.

Other semiconductor resonators: The use of PhC cavities, which affordhigh Q/V_(eff) ratios, reduces the pump tuning power. However, theoptically tuned architecture can work with any semiconductor resonator,including Fabry-Perot nano-post resonators, which offer lower qualityfactors but enhanced vertical coupling. In such bases, the cavity arrayis formed from subwavelength-diameter micropillars with distributedBragg reflectors on either end.

Passivation: If desired, the free carrier lifetime can be extended bycoating the PhC slab with an Al₂O₃ passivation layer, which reduces thesurface recombination velocity.

p-i-n junction carrier control: Alternatively, shorter carrier lifetimescan be achieved by sweeping out carriers with an applied electric field.One approach is to integrate a reversed biased p-i-n junction, which hasbeen used to reduce carrier lifetimes from 3 ns to 12 ps in siliconwaveguides.

High performance claddings: Cladding PhC cavities increases thermaldissipation, reduces the impact of fabrication disorder, and increasesstructural durability. The cladding material can be chosen to hastenheat conduction out of the PhC slab, and the thickness can be reduced tothe minimum feasible value with standard wafer thinning techniques.

Passive charge confinement: To enhance carrier density within ananocavity and minimize cross-talk between resonators, each resonatorcan be enclosed by a subwavelength insulating (oxide or air, forexample) wall. Carriers generated by a pump beam focused on a nanocavitytherefore remain within the cavity boundary regardless of diffusionspeed.

Photo-conductive materials: The array could be built with aphoto-conductive semiconductor to enable actuation of short wavelengthsignal beams with longer wavelength pumps. Taking optical dipole traparray formation as an example, a slab made of material sensitive toshortwave infrared radiation could be used to switch a visiblewavelength with 1.55 μm telecommunications light.

Other material systems: Any material with a non-negligible free carrierdispersion effect can be used for the PhC slab. Gallium nitride, forexample, has a large 3.4 eV bandgap (for controlling visiblewavelengths) while offering electro-refractive tuning performancecomparable to silicon.

Pump absorption enhancement: Numerous techniques are capable ofimproving the pump absorption efficiency. For example, a reflector belowthe PhC slab would afford double-pass pump absorption and could enableinterferometrically-enhanced absorption. Coupling pump light into ahigher-order resonance of the PhC cavity could also improve pumpabsorption.

Electrical control: Electrical control of PhC cavities throughintegrated p-i-n junctions is generally possible; however, contactingindividual elements would require the development of new bump bondingtechniques, as the standard pitch is around 50 μm.

Heat dissipation: Thermally conductive vias can be placed to connect thePhC slab to an underlying heat sink. Even silicon, which is two ordersof magnitude more thermally conductive than oxide, in a CMOS processcould be used for this purpose. Another method (at the expense ofincreased optical loss) would be to coat the PhC slab in a thin,thermally conductive material—such as graphene or diamond—to remove heatfrom the slab. For example, the thermal conductivity of graphene-on-SiO₂is 600 W/m·K (˜500×that of oxide alone).

Coupled cavities: Sub-micron pitches between PhC cavities would bereadily accessible if coupling between resonators can be tolerated. Oneapproach would be to arrange the cavities such that the frequencyresolved coupled modes generate the desired far-field emission patterns.

Example All-Optical SLM Designs

Example designs for an all-optical spatial light modulator can includethose with the following photonic crystal layers: arrays of optimized L3cavities with swept lattice hole radius in oxide-clad silicon, releasedsilicon, and released silicon nitride; arrays of optimized L4/3 cavitieswith swept lattice hole radius in oxide-clad and released silicon;arrays of optimized H1 cavities with swept lattice hole radiusoxide-clad silicon, released silicon, and released silicon nitride; andarrays of silicon, oxide-cladded, optimized H1 cavities with integratedgratings for vertical coupling.

Optimized Lattices

To solve for the lattice parameters, various slab geometries weresimulated with the open-source MIT Photonic Bands (MPB) software. Foreach geometry and material system, a 2D sweep of normalized slabthickness t=t/a and hole radius r=r/a was conducted, yielding thebandgap width and normalized center frequency ω _(center). A desiredresonant wavelength λ_(s) lies at the bandgap center when the condition

$\begin{matrix}{\frac{\Delta a}{a} = {{\frac{r_{slab}}{\overset{¯}{t}} - {{\overset{¯}{\omega}}_{center}\lambda_{s}}} = 0}} & (17)\end{matrix}$

is satisfied for a given, constant slab thickness t_(slab) (t_(slab)=220nm for silicon is assumed).

The simulations demonstrated that multiple designs satisfied thiscondition. The results of an oxide-cladded silicon slab, for example,are shown in FIGS. 12A-12E for a mid-gap wavelength λ_(s)=1550 nm. Theresults of (a) indicate that the partial bandgap (bandgap under thelight cone) width is maximized for t≈0.9 and r≈0.4. The grid cells inthe third subplot of FIG. 12A represent feasible designs, eachassociated with a different lattice period a shown in the correspondinglocation within the second subplot.

This range of possible solutions to Eqn. 17 is significant formanufacturing tolerances. Two optimal lattices and their associated bandstructures are shown in FIGS. 12B-E. The first solution (FIGS. 12B and12C), r/a=0.262 and a=410 nm, is what is typically reported inliterature. The alternative solution shown in FIGS. 12D and12E—r/a=0.379 and a=505 nm—has a larger lattice constant, and thereforemay be more amenable to photolithographic patterning.

FIGS. 13A-13C illustrate the same results for released silicon. FIG. 13Ashows the bandgap tradespace, FIG. 13B shows the mid-gap frequency, andFIG. 13C shows the design offset (Equation 17) for 1550 nm signal light.Partially due to the course sweep mesh used, at least one feasibledesign with a >400 nm was found for each slab. Future refinement ofthese simulations, combined with the experimental results of thefabrication run, may inform the design of an ideal, manufacturable PhChole lattice for each desired material system.

Cavities

After selecting the hole lattice parameters, each cavity was designedusing published, optimized hole shift values if possible, or optimizedusing 3D FDTD simulations in MEEP. The mode profiles of two resultingdesigns for oxide-cladded silicon slab PhC cavities are shown in FIGS.14 and 15. FIG. 14 shows a H1 cavity formed by removing one hole from ahexagonal hole lattice in silicon. FIG. 15 shows a L4/3 cavity formed byreplacing three holes with four holes in a hexagonal silicon lattice.

CONCLUSION

While various inventive embodiments have been described and illustratedherein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision avariety of other means and/or structures for performing the functionand/or obtaining the results and/or one or more of the advantagesdescribed herein, and each of such variations and/or modifications isdeemed to be within the scope of the inventive embodiments describedherein. More generally, those skilled in the art will readily appreciatethat all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations describedherein are meant to be exemplary and that the actual parameters,dimensions, materials, and/or configurations will depend upon thespecific application or applications for which the inventive teachingsis/are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize or be able toascertain, using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalentsto the specific inventive embodiments described herein. It is,therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presentedby way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claimsand equivalents thereto, inventive embodiments may be practicedotherwise than as specifically described and claimed. Inventiveembodiments of the present disclosure are directed to each individualfeature, system, article, material, kit, and/or method described herein.In addition, any combination of two or more such features, systems,articles, materials, kits, and/or methods, if such features, systems,articles, materials, kits, and/or methods are not mutually inconsistent,is included within the inventive scope of the present disclosure.

Also, various inventive concepts may be embodied as one or more methods,of which an example has been provided. The acts performed as part of themethod may be ordered in any suitable way. Accordingly, embodiments maybe constructed in which acts are performed in an order different thanillustrated, which may include performing some acts simultaneously, eventhough shown as sequential acts in illustrative embodiments.

All definitions, as defined and used herein, should be understood tocontrol over dictionary definitions, definitions in documentsincorporated by reference, and/or ordinary meanings of the definedterms.

The indefinite articles “a” and “an,” as used herein in thespecification and in the claims, unless clearly indicated to thecontrary, should be understood to mean “at least one.”

The phrase “and/or,” as used herein in the specification and in theclaims, should be understood to mean “either or both” of the elements soconjoined, i.e., elements that are conjunctively present in some casesand disjunctively present in other cases. Multiple elements listed with“and/or” should be construed in the same fashion, i.e., “one or more” ofthe elements so conjoined. Other elements may optionally be presentother than the elements specifically identified by the “and/or” clause,whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified.Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to “A and/or B”, when usedin conjunction with open-ended language such as “comprising” can refer,in one embodiment, to A only (optionally including elements other thanB); in another embodiment, to B only (optionally including elementsother than A); in yet another embodiment, to both A and B (optionallyincluding other elements); etc.

As used herein in the specification and in the claims, “or” should beunderstood to have the same meaning as “and/or” as defined above. Forexample, when separating items in a list, “or” or “and/or” shall beinterpreted as being inclusive, i.e., the inclusion of at least one, butalso including more than one, of a number or list of elements, and,optionally, additional unlisted items. Only terms clearly indicated tothe contrary, such as “only one of” or “exactly one of,” or, when usedin the claims, “consisting of,” will refer to the inclusion of exactlyone element of a number or list of elements. In general, the term “or”as used herein shall only be interpreted as indicating exclusivealternatives (i.e. “one or the other but not both”) when preceded byterms of exclusivity, such as “either,” “one of” “only one of” or“exactly one of.” “Consisting essentially of” when used in the claims,shall have its ordinary meaning as used in the field of patent law.

As used herein in the specification and in the claims, the phrase “atleast one,” in reference to a list of one or more elements, should beunderstood to mean at least one element selected from any one or more ofthe elements in the list of elements, but not necessarily including atleast one of each and every element specifically listed within the listof elements and not excluding any combinations of elements in the listof elements. This definition also allows that elements may optionally bepresent other than the elements specifically identified within the listof elements to which the phrase “at least one” refers, whether relatedor unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as anon-limiting example, “at least one of A and B” (or, equivalently, “atleast one of A or B,” or, equivalently “at least one of A and/or B”) canrefer, in one embodiment, to at least one, optionally including morethan one, A, with no B present (and optionally including elements otherthan B); in another embodiment, to at least one, optionally includingmore than one, B, with no A present (and optionally including elementsother than A); in yet another embodiment, to at least one, optionallyincluding more than one, A, and at least one, optionally including morethan one, B (and optionally including other elements); etc.

In the claims, as well as in the specification above, all transitionalphrases such as “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,”“containing,” “involving,” “holding,” “composed of,” and the like are tobe understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limitedto. Only the transitional phrases “consisting of” and “consistingessentially of” shall be closed or semi-closed transitional phrases,respectively, as set forth in the United States Patent Office Manual ofPatent Examining Procedures, Section 2111.03.

1. A spatial light modulator, comprising: a layer patterned with atwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities, the layer scatteringsignal light at a resonant wavelength; and at least one incoherent lightsource, in optical communication with the two-dimensional array ofsemiconductor cavities, to tune the resonant wavelength of at least onesemiconductor cavity in the two-dimensional array of semiconductorcavities via optical free carrier injection.
 2. The spatial lightmodulator of claim 1, wherein each semiconductor cavity in thetwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities has a quality factor Qof at least
 1000. 3. The spatial light modulator of claim 1, wherein thetwo-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities is comprised of: H1photonic crystal cavities; L4/3 photonic crystal cavities; ormicropillar cavities.
 4. The spatial light modulator of claim 1, whereinthe two-dimensional array of semiconductor cavities has a pitch of abouthalf the resonant wavelength to about the resonant wavelength.
 5. Thespatial light modulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one incoherentlight source comprises a two-dimensional array of light-emitting diodes(LEDs).
 6. The spatial light modulator of claim 1, wherein optical freecarriers emitted by the at least one incoherent light source are at awavelength of less than 500 nm and the signal light is at a wavelengthof more than 500 nm.
 7. The spatial light modulator of claim 1, whereina free carrier lifetime of the layer is about 100 ps or less.
 8. Thespatial light modulator of claim 1, wherein a free carrier lifetime ofthe layer is about 1 ns or more.
 9. The spatial light modulator of claim1, further comprising: a signal light source, in optical communicationwith the layer, to illuminate the layer with the signal light.
 10. Thespatial light modulator of claim 9, wherein the spatial light modulatordoes not include a waveguide between the signal light source and thelayer.
 11. The spatial light modulator of claim 9, further comprising: acontrol layer, operably coupled to the at least one incoherent lightsource, to modulate the at least one incoherent light source at a rateof at least 1 GHz.
 12. The spatial light modulator of claim 9, whereinthe signal light source is positioned for normal incidence of the signallight on the surface of the layer.
 13. The spatial light modulator ofclaim 12, further comprising: a polarizing beam splitter, in opticalcommunication with the layer, to receive the signal light reflected bythe layer and to separate the signal light into directly reflected lightand cavity reflected light.
 14. The spatial light modulator of claim 9,wherein the signal light source is positioned for off-normal incidenceof the signal light on the surface of the layer.
 15. The spatial lightmodulator of claim 14, wherein the signal light includes directlyreflected light and cavity reflected light.
 16. The spatial lightmodulator of claim 9, further comprising: a sensing device to detect thereflected signal light.
 17. A spatial light modulator, comprising: aresonant surface to reflect incident signal light at a resonantwavelength; and at least one incoherent light source, in opticalcommunication with the resonant surface, to tune the resonant wavelengthof at least one oscillator of the resonant surface via optical freecarrier injection.
 18. The spatial light modulator of claim 17, furthercomprising: a signal light source, in optical communication with theresonant surface, to reflect the signal light off the resonant surfaceto generate reflected signal light.
 19. The spatial light modulator ofclaim 18, further comprising: a sensing device to detect the reflectedsignal light.
 20. The spatial light modulator of claim 17, wherein theresonant surface is defined by a photonic crystal slab guided moderesonator.
 21. The spatial light modulator of claim 17, wherein theresonant surface includes a wavelength-scale patterned semiconductorslab.
 22. The spatial light modulator of claim 21, wherein the resonantsurface supports a spatially distributed resonant mode.